DB400A1 Frigidaire Dishwasher - Instructions

In about 20 minutes, I was able to remove the front panel and access the springs. Besides a hard water line in the way, it was a snap.

I pulled out the dishwasher removed the two heating element insulated wires and removed both threaded brass nuts and replaced them both. Problem solved. Luckily I have a local parts and repair store with a repairman that knows every part of every appliance ever made (no kidding, I have yet to stump him with a part or question). He did not have the parts, told me to go to partselect.com order two nuts, replace them both at the same time, and fix it myself because its an easy repair and not worth paying hundreds of dollars, if you can use a wrench. He was right, and partselect.com had the right parts, at the right price, easy to find and order, and I can impress the wife with my repair skills. Thanks again!

Removed the "kick plate" (4) screws. the hard part was attaching the springs to the door hooks. you cannot see them, have to go by feel. then stretch them to lower frame. attached the lower door trim piece with three screws.

I removed the front panel below the door. There are 4 Hex screws, two at the top (accessible with the door open) and two at the bottom. After removing the screws, the panel came off, and I could reach inside to replace the springs. I found it easier to use a socket wrench than a screw driver.
Easily done. Anybody can do it. It took longer to clean up the panel than to do the actual repair.

very simple to do....attach spring to door...stretch to hole in frame and attach there...easy as 123

Replaced the gasket

Never worked on a dishwasher before but quickly learned that on this particular one, it's only this thin little brass nut that tightens down the element from the underside of the washer. If not tight enough, water drips right down onto the electrical connections. In this case water began to drip and the heat from the electrical current began melting a clear rubber shield thing. Luckily I was home during the cycle and figured out the problem. Great website that seems to have all necessary parts for my washer. Quick shipment!

used the pliers to grip the end of the spring, extended it and removed it from the door and frame. The install then followed. It takes longer to remove the front panel than to do the repair.

The parts arrived 20 hours after ordering -great service & the parts were just like like the removed parts only new. The old door gasket was pulled from its groove & and the new gasket was installed witout using tools. No more leaking water.The door spring installation wesa bit more difficult. The front bottom was removed with a nut drive, the broken springs were fished out, new springs were pull onto the arms and the cover put back in place. Not a bad job for a crippled, one-eyed 82 year old man.

Both heating element brass nuts had a split in them. They had fallen off the heating element and were hanging on the electrical wires. I removed the wires from the heating element and removed the brass nuts from the wires. I then screwed the new nuts on the heating element and reattached the wires. problem solved. I want to thank you for having the parts I needed as Sears had discontinued them for this Kenmore appliance.

I ordered a new door gasket and door spring. I unscrewed the two screws that hold the dishwasher in place and pulled it out. I pulled the old broken spring off with pliers and installed the new one ,,,very easy. I then took the new door gasket and soaked it in hot water in the sink for 15 min. That made it very soft and pliable to work with. I used pliers to pull the old gasket out then cleaned the area around the old gasket where crud had built up. I pushed in the new gasket working from top to bottom one side at a time. Turned it on an ran through a cycle and it works perfect now ,,,no leaks.

Removed lower panel; unmounted fill valve assembly. Installed two springs. Remounted fill valve assembly and reinstaslled the lower panel. Door must be in a near closed position to gain access to the door "L" spring brackets.

Simply remove the bottom panel below the door. The owners manual (22 year old model) showed the proper hole in which to attach the spring. Attach spring to door and then to frame of dishwasher, as illustrated in manual. It is a tight fit to get your hands in there, but once you do it is a snap. We have replace these springs several times over the life of this appliance, this is the first time we have actually found the proper springs, should last a long time. Thank you Parts Select for having the inventory for such an old model!

This dishwasher has a plastic bolt that holds the actuator on. The action loosens the bolt and it wobbles and eventually comes off. After enough attempts the bolt will strip and need to be replaced. I took some 3M loctite this time to hold it in place. It is 24 years old, but still kicking

I only had one break, but bought both to replace. I don't agree with those that say you have to slide the dishwasher out to repair. I simply removed the lower kick plate, and replace the springs in no time. Very easy as was ordering the parts. I will return here for all my appliance parts in the future. Hope I don't actually need any.